General facts regarding the driver:
Motor vehicle crashes are the leading cause of death in the U.S. for people of every age from 3 through 6 and 8 through 34. Traffic fatalities accounted for more than 90 percent of transportation-related fatalities.
In 2007, 41, 059 people were killed and nearly 2.5 million were injured on U.S. highways.
In 2007, an average of 112 persons died each day - one every 12.8 minutes - in motor vehicle crashes.
The most recent published report by the National Highway Traffic Administration (NHTSA) indicates the economic cost of vehicle crashes in 2000 was $230.6 billion.
Information reported from the USDOT on July 2, 2009 (http://www.dot.gov/affairs/2009/dot9309.htm) was as follows:
U.S. Department of Transportation today announced that the number of overall traffic fatalities reported in 2008 hit their lowest level since 1961 and that fatalities in the first three months of 2009 continue to decrease. The fatality rate, which accounts for variables like fewer miles traveled, also reached the lowest level ever recorded. The fatality data for 2008 placed the highway death count at 37,261, a drop of 9.7 percent from 2007. The fatality rate for 2008 was 1.27 persons per 100 million VMT, about 7 percent below the rate of 1.36 recorded for 2007. Additional 2008 data will be available at a later date.
Alcohol and Driving:
In 2007, 12,998 of the 41,059 deaths were alcohol related. This is an average of one alcohol-related traffic fatality every 40 minutes.
In all 50 states, the District of Columbia, and Puerto Rico it is illegal per se to drive a vehicle or operate a motorcycle with a blood alcohol concentration (BAC) of .08 or above.
In 2007, there were 12,998 alcohol-impaired-driving fatalities (32% of total traffic fatalities for year). This is a reduction compared to the 33% which occurred in 2006
NHTSA estimates that alcohol was involved in 7 percent of all traffic crashes in 2005 (police reported 6,159,000).
In 2005, a total of 414 (21 percent) of the fatalities among children age 14 and younger occurred in crashes involving alcohol. Of those 414 fatalities, more than half (224) of those killed were passengers in vehicles with drivers who had been drinking with BAC levels of .01 or higher.
Seat belts and child restraints:
In 2007, 49 states and the District of Columbia had safety belt use laws in effect. Seat belt usage in all states in 2007 was 82%.
In 2008, of the 25,351 passenger vehicle occupant fatalities 11,477 (45%) were restrained and 13,874 (55%) were not. Almost two-thirds (64%) of those occupants killed (12,671) during the night were unrestrained, compared to 45% (12,482) during the day.
Of the 28,933 passenger vehicle occupant fatalities in 2007, restraint was unknown for 2,291 (8%). Of the 26,642 fatalities for which restraint was known, 14,390 (54%) were unrestrained.
1975 through 2007, it is estimated that safety belts saved 241,789 lives, including 15,147 lives saved of occupants 5 and older in 2007. If all passenger vehicle occupants over age 4 wore safety belts, an additional 5,024 lives could have been saved.
In 2007, 33% of passenger car occupants and 37% of light truck occupants involved in fatal crashes were unrestrained. In fatal crashes, 76% of passenger vehicle occupants who were totally ejected from vehicles were killed. Only 1% of occupants reported to have been using restraints were ejected
Research indicates that lap/shoulder seat belts reduce risk of fatal injury to front seat passengers by 45% and moderate-to-critical injury by 50%, and 60% and 65% respectively for light truck occupants.
Every day in the United States, an average of 5 children age 14 and younger were killed and 548 were injured in motor vehicle crashes during 2007. Properly used booster seats - which let older kids shorter than 4 foot 9 inches gain the fullest protection from standard seat belts designed for adults - substantially reduce the risk of injury in a crash.
Drowsy Driving:
Drowsy driving is a serious problem that leads to thousands of automobile crashes each year. Although no driver is immune, the following three population groups are at highest risk: young people (ages 16 to 29), especially males; shift workers whose sleep is disrupted by working at night or working long or irregular hours; and people with untreated sleep apnea syndrome (SAS) and narcolepsy.
Scientific studies show that consumption of even small amounts of alcohol intensifies pre-existing drowsiness.
Sleep is the only real antidote to sleepiness. Scientific studies show that the common stopgap remedies of getting out of a car briefly and engaging in some exercise or cranking up the radio will not counter drowsy driving.
Because young people are disproportionately represented in this category of fatalities, parents of teens and young adults should be urged to let visibly sleepy friends of their own children sleep over, much as one would urge a visibly drunk person to avoid the road until their condition improved.
Pedestrians:
On average, a pedestrian is killed in a traffic crash every 113 minutes and injured in a traffic crash every 8 minutes.
There were 70,000 pedestrians injured in traffic crashes in 2007.
Most pedestrian fatalities in 2007 occurred in urban areas (73 %), at non-intersection locations (77%), in normal weather conditions (90%), and at night (67%).
More than two-thirds (70%) of the pedestrians killed in 2007 were males. In 2007, the male pedestrian fatality rate per 100,000 population was 2.19 - more than double the rate for females (0.91 per 100,000 population). In 2007, the male pedestrian injury rate per 100,000 population was 26, compared with 20 for females.
In approximately 49% of pedestrian fatality crashes in 2007 alcohol was involved. Of those, in 35% of cases, it was the pedestrian who had a blood alcohol concentration (BAC) of .08 or higher.
Bicyclists:
More than 49,000 bicyclists have died in traffic crashes in the United States since 1932 -- the first year that bicycle fatalities were recorded. The highest number of pedal cyclist fatalities ever recorded in the Fatality Analysis Reporting System (FARS) was 1,003 in 1975.
In 2007, 698 pedal cyclists were killed and an additional 44,000 were injured in traffic crashes. Pedal cyclist deaths accounted for 2 percent of all traffic fatalities, and pedal cyclists made up 2 percent of all the people injured in traffic crashes during the year.
The 14-and-younger age group accounted for 13% (91) of the fatalities, and males accounted for 80% (83) if the fatalities among pedalcyclists age 14 and younger.
In 2007, an estimated 43,000 pedalcyclists were injured in motor vehicle traffic crashes. Twenty-four percent (or an estimated 10,000) of the pedalcyclists injured were age 14 or younger
One-fifth (17%) of the pedal cyclists killed in traffic crashes in 2005 were between 5 and 15 years old. Universal bicycle helmet use by children ages 4 to 15 would prevent 39,000 to 45,000 head injuries, and 18,000 to 55,000 scalp and face injuries annually.
Despite the fact that 70 to 80 percent of all fatal bicycle crashes involve head injuries, only about 20-25 percent of all bicyclists wear bicycle helmets.
Motorcycles:
The 5,154 motorcyclist fatalities in 2007 accounted for 13% of all traffic fatalities and an additional 103,000 were injured.
In 2007, 41% of fatally injured motorcycle riders and 53% of fatally injured passengers were not wearing helmets at the time of the crash. NHTSA estimates that helmets saved 1784 motorcyclists’ lives. If all had worn helmets an additional 800 lives could have been saved.
Twenty-six percent of motorcycle riders involved in fatal crashes in 2007 had invalid licenses. Twenty-seven percent of riders involved in fatal crashes had BAC levels of 0.08 g/dL or higher.
Note: Sources of information - US Department of Transportation - http://www.dot.gov/safety.html, National Highway Traffic Safety Administration - (NHTSA) - http://www.nhtsa.dot.gov/d , Federal Highway Administration (FHWA) - http://safety.fhwa.dot.gov/ or Federal Motor Carriers Administration (FMCA) - http://www.fmcsa.dot.gov/safety-security/csa2010/home.htm and The Road Information Program (TRIP) - trip@tripnet.org.
Updated July 28, 2009
